Hartman v. AT&T Corp.

971 F. Supp. 952, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 21461, 1996 WL 905935
CourtDistrict Court, D. Maryland
DecidedMay 3, 1996
DocketCivil Action No. WMN-95-475
StatusPublished

This text of 971 F. Supp. 952 (Hartman v. AT&T Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Maryland primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hartman v. AT&T Corp., 971 F. Supp. 952, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 21461, 1996 WL 905935 (D. Md. 1996).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

NICKERSON, District Judge.

Pending before the Court are the motions for summary judgment filed by Defendants AT & T Corp. (Paper No. 9) and Unisys (Paper No. 10). Plaintiffs Bonnie and Richard Hartman have opposed the motions, and Defendants have replied. Upon a review of the pleadings and the applicable law, the Court determines that both motions will be granted.

I. BACKGROUND

In the course of her employment as a Plant Assignment Clerk at Chesapeake & Potomac Telephone Co. of Maryland, Plaintiff Bonnie Hartman used keyboard equipment manufactured by Defendants AT & T Corp. (“AT & T”) and Unisys that she alleges caused her to sustain repetitive stress injuries. Mrs. Hartman and her husband Richard Hartman originally filed suit on March 25,1993 in the Eastern District of New York, alleging that AT & T and Unisys were liable under theories of negligence and strict liability for Mrs. Hartman’s injuries. The action was subsequently transferred to the United States District Court for the District of Maryland pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1404.

Plaintiffs’ Amended Complaint contains four counts. In addition to the claims of negligence (Count I) and strict products liability (Count II), Plaintiffs also seek damages for loss of services, society and consortium (Count III) and punitive damages (Count IV). Defendants AT & T and Unisys both filed Motions for Summary Judgment arguing that Plaintiffs’ claims are barred by the statute of limitations and therefore, must be dismissed. This Court agrees.

II. LEGAL STANDARD

It is well established that summary judgment is proper if the evidence before the court, consisting of the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions of record, establishes that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c); Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2552, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). Rule 56 mandates the entry of summary judgment against a party who, after reasonable time for discovery and upon motion, “fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the existence of an element essential to that party’s ease, and on which that party will bear the burden of proof at trial.” Id. at 322, 106 S.Ct. at 2552. “[A] complete failure of proof concerning an essential element of the non-moving party’s case necessarily renders all other facts immaterial [and][t]he moving party is ‘entitled to judgment as a matter of law.’ ” Id. at 323, 106 S.Ct. at 2552 (citations omitted).

If the evidence favoring the non-moving party is “merely colorable, or is not significantly probative, summary judgment may be granted.” Anderson v. Liberty Lobby Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 249-50, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2511, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986) (citations omitted). Unsupported speculation is insufficient to defeat a motion for summary judgment. Felty v. Graves-Humphreys Co., 818 F.2d 1126, 1128 (4th Cir.1987) (citing Ash v. United Parcel Serv., Inc., 800 F.2d 409, 411-12 (4th Cir.1986)). Moreover, the mere existence of [954]*954some factual dispute is insufficient to defeat a motion for summary judgment; there must be a genuine issue of material fact. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 247-48, 106 S.Ct. at 2509-10. Thus, only disputes over those facts that might affect the outcome of the case under the governing law are considered to be “material.” Id.

With these principles in mind, the Court will address the arguments presented by the parties.

III. DISCUSSION

When a case is transferred from one federal district court to another, the transferee court must apply the choice-of-law principles of the transferor court. Ferens v. John Deere Co., 494 U.S. 516, 110 S.Ct. 1274, 108 L.Ed.2d 443 (1990). Since this case was transferred from a New York federal district court, New York’s borrowing statute, N.Y. Civ. Prac § 202, applies in determining the issue of limitations. Section 202 provides, as applied in this instance, that:

An action based upon a cause of action accruing without the state cannot be commenced after the expiration of the time limited by the laws of either the state [New York] or the place without the state [Maryland] where the cause of action accrued.

Thus, if the action is untimely under either Maryland’s or New York’s statute of limitations, then the action must be dismissed as time-barred.

New York’s statute of limitations for personal injury claims is three years. N.Y. Civ. Prac. § 214(5). As a general rule, a cause of action to recover for personal injury accrues on the date the injury is sustained. Snyder v. Town Insulation, Inc., 81 N.Y.2d 429, 599 N.Y.S.2d 515, 615 N.E.2d 999, 1000 (1993); Schmidt v. Merchants Despatch Transp. Co., 270 N.Y. 287, 200 N.E. 824, 827 (1936). The injury itself marks the date of accrual, regardless of when the negligent act occurred or when the plaintiff discovered the wrong. Piper v. International Business Mach. Corp., 219 A.D.2d 56, 639 N.Y.S.2d 623, 624 (4th Dept.1996) (citing Kronos, Inc. v. AVX Corp., 81 N.Y.2d 90, 595 N.Y.S.2d 931, 612 N.E.2d 289 (1993)). Under New York law, the “date of injury” rule applies specifically to claims alleging repetitive stress injury due to the use of computer equipment. Adams v. Key Tronic Corp., 1994 WL 594779 (S.D.N.Y. Oct.31, 1994) (finding that the discovery rule promulgated by section 214-c is not applicable where plaintiffs allege injury resulting from keyboard use); see e.g., Piper, 639 N.Y.S.2d at 624; Wallen v. American Tel. & Tel. Co., Index No. 12336/91 (N.Y. Sup.Ct., Bronx County, Sept. 17, 1992), aff’d, 195 A.D.2d 417, 601 N.Y.S.2d 796 (1st Dept.), leave to appeal denied, 82 N.Y.2d 659, 605 N.Y.S.2d 5, 625 N.E.2d 590 (1993).

In determining the date of injury/accrual, the court in Wallen explicated that “an injury is deemed to have occurred for statute of limitations purposes no later than the time that the injurious process first manifests itself." Id. (emphasis added). Judge Green, in a recent New York Appellate Division decision, considered the interests of fairness to both the defendant and the plaintiff and provided further clarification regarding the date of injury:

The date of injury rule that has emerged from those repetitive stress injury cases is that accrual is measured from the earlier of two dates: the plaintiffs last use of the computer equipment or the onset of the plaintiffs symptoms.

Piper, 639 N.Y.S.2d at 626 (citations omitted).

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc.
477 U.S. 242 (Supreme Court, 1986)
Ferens v. John Deere Co.
494 U.S. 516 (Supreme Court, 1990)
Pennwalt Corp. v. Nasios
550 A.2d 1155 (Court of Appeals of Maryland, 1988)
Parajecki v. International Business MacHines Corp.
899 F. Supp. 1050 (E.D. New York, 1995)
Schmidt v. Merchants Despatch Transportation Co.
200 N.E. 824 (New York Court of Appeals, 1936)
Kronos, Inc. v. AVX Corp.
612 N.E.2d 289 (New York Court of Appeals, 1993)
Snyder v. Town Insulation, Inc.
615 N.E.2d 999 (New York Court of Appeals, 1993)
Piper v. International Business Machines Corp.
219 A.D.2d 56 (Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York, 1996)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
971 F. Supp. 952, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 21461, 1996 WL 905935, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hartman-v-att-corp-mdd-1996.